#prior-general — Public Fediverse posts

Quote of the day, 4 September: St. Teresa of Avila

Giovanni Battista Rossi (1507–1578), prior general of the Carmelite Order, was known in Spain as Father General Rubeo. When he visited Avila in 1567, Teresa feared he would disapprove of her new foundation at St. Joseph’s Monastery and send her back to the Incarnation. Instead, he recognized her renewal of Carmel and authorized her to found other monasteries, opening the way for the Teresian reform.

How our Father General came to Avila and what followed from his visit.

Our generals always reside in Rome, and none ever came to Spain. So it seemed impossible that one should come now. But since nothing is impossible when our Lord wants it, His Majesty ordained that what had never happened before should come about now.

When I came to know of it, I felt grieved. For as was already mentioned concerning the foundation of St. Joseph’s, that house was not subject to the friars for the reason given. I feared two things: one, that our Father General would be displeased with me (and rightly so since he was unaware of how the things had come to pass); the other, that he would order me to return to the monastery of the Incarnation, where the mitigated rule is observed, which for me would have been an affliction for many reasons—there would be no point in going into them.

One reason should be enough: that in the Incarnation I wouldn’t be able to observe the austerity of the primitive rule, that the community numbers more than 150, and that where there are few there is more harmony and quiet.

Our Lord did better than I had imagined. For the general is such a servant of the Lord, and so discreet and learned, that he regarded the work as good; moreover, he showed no displeasure toward me. His name is Fray Juan Bautista Rubeo de Ravenna, a person very distinguished in the order, and rightly so.

Well then, when he arrived in Avila, I arranged that he come to St. Joseph’s. And the bishop thought it well that he be given all the welcome that the bishop himself would receive.

I gave our Father General an account in all truth and openness, for it is my inclination to speak thus with my superiors, whatever might happen, since they stand in the place of God—and with confessors, the same. If I didn’t do this, it wouldn’t seem to me that my soul was secure.

And so I gave him an account of my soul and of almost my whole life, although it is very wretched. He consoled me much and assured me that he wouldn’t order me to leave St. Joseph’s.

He rejoiced to see our manner of life, a portrait, although an imperfect one, of the beginnings of our order, and how the primitive rule was being kept in all its rigor, for it wasn’t being observed in any monastery in the entire order; only the mitigated rule was observed. And with the desire he had that this beginning go forward, he gave me very extensive patent letters, so that more monasteries could be founded, along with censures to prevent any provincial from restraining me. I did not ask for these, but he understood from my way of prayer that my desires to help some soul come closer to God were great.

Saint Teresa of Avila

The Foundations, ch. 2, nos. 1–3

Teresa of Avila, St 1985, The Collected Works of St. Teresa of Avila, Kavanaugh, K & Rodriguez, O (trans.), ICS Publications, Washington DC.

Featured image: Flemish printmaker Arnold van Westerhout engraved this portrait for Gabriel Wessel’s Historia chronologica priorum generalium, edited by Mariano Ventimiglia and published in Naples in 1773. It appears with Giovanni Battista Rossi’s biography on page 188. The volume also includes van Westerhout’s portrait of Blessed John Soreth. Image credit: Carmelites (Public domain).

28 July: Blessed John Soreth

July 28
BLESSED JOHN SORETH
Priest

Optional Memorial
In the houses in France: Memorial

John Soreth was born at Caen in Normandy and entered Carmel as a young man. He took a doctorate of theology in Paris and served as regent of studies and provincial of his province. He was prior general from 1451 until his death at Angers in 1471. He restored observance within the Order and promoted its reform, wrote a famous commentary on the Rule, issued new Constitutions in 1462, and promoted the growth of the nuns and the Third Order.

From the Common of Men Saints (Religious), except the following:

Office of Readings

The Second Reading
Ch 4

From the Exhortation on the Carmelite Rule by Blessed John Soreth

Learn from Christ how you should love him

It is from Christ Himself, brother, that you will learn how to love Him. Learn to love Him tenderly, with all your heart; prudently, with all your soul; fervently, with all your strength. Love Him tenderly, so that you will not be seduced away from Him; prudently, so that you will not be open to deception; and fervently, so that downheartedness will not draw you away from God’s love. May the wisdom of Christ seem sweet to you, so that you are not led away by the glory of the world and the pleasures of the flesh. May Christ, Who is the Truth, enlighten you, so that you do not fall prey to the spirit of error and falsehood. May Christ, Who is the Strength of God, fortify you when hardships wear you out.

St. Basil says that we are bound to our benefactors by bonds of affection and duty. But what greater gift or favor could we receive than God Himself? For, He continues, I experience the ineffable love of God–a love more easily felt than described. Since God has planted the seeds of goodness in us, we can be certain that He is awaiting their fruits.

So let the love of Christ kindle your enthusiasm; let His knowledge be your teacher, and His constancy your strength. May your enthusiasm be fervent, balanced in judgment and invincible, and neither lukewarm nor lacking in discretion. Love the Lord your God with all the affection of which your heart is capable; love Him with all the attentiveness and balance of judgement of your soul and reason; love Him with such strength that you will not be afraid to die for love of Him. May the Lord Jesus seem so sweet and tender to your affections that the sweet enticements of the world hold no attraction for you; may His sweetness conquer their sweetness.

May He also be the guiding light of your intellect and the ruler of your reason: then you will not only avoid the deceptions of heresy and save your faith from their ambushes, but you will also avoid too great and indiscreet an enthusiasm in your behavior. God is Wisdom, and He wants to be loved not only fervently, but also wisely; otherwise the spirit of error will easily take advantage of your enthusiasm. If you neglect this advice, that cunning enemy thereby has a most effective means of taking the love of God from your heart by making you progress carelessly and without discretion. Therefore, may your love be strong and persevering, neither giving in to fears nor being worn out by labors.

Not to be led astray by allurements, that’s what it means to love with all one’s heart; not to be deceived by false arguments, that’s the meaning of loving with all one’s soul; not to let your spirit be broken by difficulties, that is to love with all one’s strength.

The Rule goes on to say that you should love your neighbor as yourself. For he who loves God, loves his neighbor too; “for he who does not love his brother whom he sees, how can he love God whom he does not see?”

Responsory

R/. This is the love of God: that we keep His commandments; * and His commandments are not burdensome.
V/. Those who keep His commandments abide in God, and God abides in them; * and His commandments are not burdensome.

Morning Prayer

Canticle of Zechariah

Ant. Be faithful ’til death, and I will give you the crown of life.

Prayer

Lord God,
you willed that Blessed John Soreth
should renew religious life
and establish communities for women
in the Order of Carmel.
May his prayers and merits
help us to be ever more faithful
in following Christ and His Mother.

We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.

Evening Prayer

Canticle of Mary

Ant. This faithful man made his city strong and renewed the faith of sinners.

Catholic Church 1993, Proper of the Liturgy of the Hours of the Order of the Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel and the Order of Discalced Carmelites (Rev. and augm.), Institutum Carmelitanum, Rome.

https://www.europesays.com/uk/539752/ El Prior General visita comunidades en España mientras la Secretaría General garantiza cercanía, memoria y orden #AgustinosRecoletos #CasasDeFormación #ComunidadesReligiosas #España #EU #Europe #LucianoAudisio #MemoriaInstitucional #PriorGeneral #SecretaríaGeneral #Spain #UnidadDeLaOrden. #VisitaDeRenovación

28 July: Blessed John Soreth

July 28
BLESSED JOHN SORETH
Priest

Optional Memorial
In the houses in France: Memorial

John Soreth was born at Caen in Normandy and entered Carmel as a young man. He took a doctorate of theology in Paris and served as regent of studies and provincial of his province. He was prior general from 1451 until his death at Angers in 1471. He restored observance within the Order and promoted its reform, wrote a famous commentary on the Rule, issued new Constitutions in 1462, and promoted the growth of the nuns and the Third Order.

From the Common of Men Saints (Religious), except the following:

Office of Readings

The Second Reading
Ch 4

From the Exhortation on the Carmelite Rule by Blessed John Soreth

Learn from Christ how you should love him

It is from Christ Himself, brother, that you will learn how to love Him. Learn to love Him tenderly, with all your heart; prudently, with all your soul; fervently, with all your strength. Love Him tenderly, so that you will not be seduced away from Him; prudently, so that you will not be open to deception; and fervently, so that downheartedness will not draw you away from God’s love. May the wisdom of Christ seem sweet to you, so that you are not led away by the glory of the world and the pleasures of the flesh. May Christ, Who is the Truth, enlighten you, so that you do not fall prey to the spirit of error and falsehood. May Christ, Who is the Strength of God, fortify you when hardships wear you out.

St. Basil says that we are bound to our benefactors by bonds of affection and duty. But what greater gift or favor could we receive than God Himself? For, He continues, I experience the ineffable love of God–a love more easily felt than described. Since God has planted the seeds of goodness in us, we can be certain that He is awaiting their fruits.

So let the love of Christ kindle your enthusiasm; let His knowledge be your teacher, and His constancy your strength. May your enthusiasm be fervent, balanced in judgment and invincible, and neither lukewarm nor lacking in discretion. Love the Lord your God with all the affection of which your heart is capable; love Him with all the attentiveness and balance of judgement of your soul and reason; love Him with such strength that you will not be afraid to die for love of Him. May the Lord Jesus seem so sweet and tender to your affections that the sweet enticements of the world hold no attraction for you; may His sweetness conquer their sweetness.

May He also be the guiding light of your intellect and the ruler of your reason: then you will not only avoid the deceptions of heresy and save your faith from their ambushes, but you will also avoid too great and indiscreet an enthusiasm in your behavior. God is Wisdom, and He wants to be loved not only fervently, but also wisely; otherwise the spirit of error will easily take advantage of your enthusiasm. If you neglect this advice, that cunning enemy thereby has a most effective means of taking the love of God from your heart by making you progress carelessly and without discretion. Therefore, may your love be strong and persevering, neither giving in to fears nor being worn out by labors.

Not to be led astray by allurements, that’s what it means to love with all one’s heart; not to be deceived by false arguments, that’s the meaning of loving with all one’s soul; not to let your spirit be broken by difficulties, that is to love with all one’s strength.

The Rule goes on to say that you should love your neighbor as yourself. For he who loves God, loves his neighbor too; “for he who does not love his brother whom he sees, how can he love God whom he does not see?”

Responsory

R/. This is the love of God: that we keep His commandments; * and His commandments are not burdensome.
V/. Those who keep His commandments abide in God, and God abides in them; * and His commandments are not burdensome.

Morning Prayer

Canticle of Zechariah

Ant. Be faithful ’til death, and I will give you the crown of life.

Prayer

Lord God,
you willed that Blessed John Soreth
should renew religious life
and establish communities for women
in the Order of Carmel.
May his prayers and merits
help us to be ever more faithful
in following Christ and His Mother.

We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.

Evening Prayer

Canticle of Mary

Ant. This faithful man made his city strong and renewed the faith of sinners.

Catholic Church 1993, Proper of the Liturgy of the Hours of the Order of the Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel and the Order of Discalced Carmelites (Rev. and augm.), Institutum Carmelitanum, Rome.

#BlessedJohnSoreth #Carmelite #LiturgyOfTheHours #optionalMemorial #priest #PriorGeneral

Quote of the day, 16 May: Hermann Cohen

There may still be some who, from deference to the naturally staid, impassive character of the English, would counsel Catholics to maintain a certain reserve in their devotion to Mary, as though, indeed, there were any other than Mary who was to crush the head of error; as though there could be danger or excess where God has so wondrously surpassed Himself: can the love of Catholics for Mary ever rise to such a height, or can they honour her with glory so sublime, as that to which God Himself has chosen to exalt her?

As if this filial homage could be out of place in England, the birth-place of the devotion of the Holy Scapular, the favoured spot to which the Blessed Virgin came, bringing from heaven that pledge of salvation, to bestow it upon a Religious, not of Italy or of Spain, but on an English Saint, born and bred in England, English in his labors, in his mission, and in his election as General of the Carmelite Order.

This preference for England as the scene of that revelation, and the choice of an Englishman, St. Simon Stock, as the receiver of the promise attached to the Scapular is, to my mind, a pledge of the future conversion of that nation.

Servant of God Augustine of the Blessed Sacrament
Hermann Cohen

Lecture at Malines (3 September 1864)

Tierney, T  2017,  A Life of Hermann Cohen: From Franz Liszt to John of the Cross,  Balboa Press,  Bloomington, IN

Featured image: This close-up photo shows the monumental reliquary of St. Simon Stock in the chapel of the Carmelite priory in Aylesford, England. Image credit: British Province of Carmelites / Flickr (Some rights reserved)

⬦ Reflection Question ⬦
Do I believe there can be “danger or excess” in loving Our Lady as God exalts her?
⬦ Join the conversation in the comments.

#BlessedVirgin #BrownScapular #CarmeliteOrder #Catholic #Catholics #conversion #England #HermannCohen #Mary #PriorGeneral #scapular #StSimonStock

16 May: Saint Simon Stock

May 16
SAINT SIMON STOCK
Religious

Optional Memorial

In the houses in the United Kingdom and Ireland: Memorial

Simon, an Englishman, died at Bordeaux in the mid-thirteenth century. He has been venerated in the Carmelite Order for his personal holiness and his devotion to Our Lady. A liturgical celebration in his honor was observed locally in the fifteenth century, and later extended to the whole Order.

From the Common of Holy Men (Religious)

OFFICE OF READINGS

The Second Reading

From the Flaming Arrow by Nicholas of France, Prior General
(Chapter 6)

I will lead her into the desert, and there I will speak to her heart

Was it not our Lord and Savior Who led us into the desert, as a mark of His favor, so that there He might speak to our hearts with special intimacy? It is not in public, not in the market place, not amid noise and bustle that He shows Himself to His friends for their consolation and reveals His secret mysteries to them, but behind closed doors.

To the solitude of the mountain did Abraham, unswerving in faith and discerning the issue from afar in hope, ascend at the Lord’s command, ready for obedience’s sake to sacrifice Isaac his son; under which mystery the passion of Christ—the true Isaac—lies hidden. To the solitude of the mountain was it too that Abraham’s nephew, Lot, was told to flee for his life in haste from Sodom.

In the solitude of Mount Sinai was the Law given to Moses, and there was he so clothed with light that when he came down from the mountain no one could look upon the brightness of his face.

In the solitude of Mary’s chamber, as she conversed with Gabriel, was the Word of the Father most high in very truth made flesh.

In the solitude of Mount Tabor it undoubtedly was, when it was His will to be transfigured, that God made man revealed His glory to His chosen intimates of the Old and New Testaments. To a mountain solitude did our Savior ascend alone in order to pray. In the solitude of the desert did He fast forty days and forty nights together, and there did He will to be tempted by the devil, so as to show us the most fitting place for prayer, penance, and victory over temptation.

Top the solitude of mountain or desert it was, then, that our Savior retired when He would pray; though we read that He came down from the mountain when He would preach to the people or manifest His works. He who planted our fathers in the solitude of the mountain thus gave Himself to them and their successors as a model, and desired them to write down His deeds, which are never empty of mystical meaning, as an example.

It was this rule of our Savior, as rule of utmost holiness, that some of our predecessors followed of old. They tarried long in the solitude of the desert conscious of their own imperfection. Sometimes however—though rarely—they came down from their desert, anxious, so as not to fail in what they regarded as their duty, to be of service to their neighbors, and sowed broadcast of the grain, threshed out in preaching, that they had so sweetly reaped in solitude with the sickle of contemplation.

Responsory

R/. O that I had wings like a dove, to fly away and be at rest; * so I would escape far away, and take refuge in the desert (alleluia).
V/. The world and its cravings pass away, but those who do God’s will stand firm for ever. * So I would escape far away, and take refuge in the desert (alleluia).

MORNING PRAYER

Canticle of Zechariah

Ant. The Lord is all that I have; the Lord is good to the soul that seeks Him (alleluia).

Prayer

Father,
You called St. Simon Stock to serve you
in the brotherhood of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel.
Through his prayers
help us like him to live in your presence
and to work for man’s salvation.

Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.

EVENING PRAYER

Canticle of Mary

Ant. Where brethren are united in praising God, there the Lord will bestow His blessing (alleluia).

Catholic Church 1993, Proper of the Liturgy of the Hours of the Order of the Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel and the Order of Discalced Carmelites (Rev. and augm.), Institutum Carmelitanum, Rome.

#Carmelite #LiturgyOfTheHours #optionalMemorial #PriorGeneral #religious #scapular #StSimonStock

July 28
BLESSED JOHN SORETH
Priest

Optional Memorial
In the houses in France: Memorial

Pastoral note: In the year 2024, this Optional Memorial gives way to the 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time

John Soreth was born at Caen in Normandy and entered Carmel as a young man. He took a doctorate of theology in Paris and served as regent of studies and provincial of his province. He was prior general from 1451 until his death at Angers in 1471. He restored observance within the Order and promoted its reform, wrote a famous commentary on the Rule, issued new Constitutions in 1462, and promoted the growth of the nuns and the Third Order.

From the Common of Men Saints (Religious), except the following:

Office of Readings

The Second Reading
Ch 4

From the Exhortation on the Carmelite Rule by Blessed John Soreth

Learn from Christ how you should love him

It is from Christ Himself, brother, that you will learn how to love Him. Learn to love Him tenderly, with all your heart; prudently, with all your soul; fervently, with all your strength. Love Him tenderly, so that you will not be seduced away from Him; prudently, so that you will not be open to deception; and fervently, so that downheartedness will not draw you away from God’s love. May the wisdom of Christ seem sweet to you, so that you are not led away by the glory of the world and the pleasures of the flesh. May Christ, Who is the Truth, enlighten you, so that you do not fall prey to the spirit of error and falsehood. May Christ, Who is the Strength of God, fortify you when hardships wear you out.

St. Basil says that we are bound to our benefactors by bonds of affection and duty. But what greater gift or favor could we receive than God Himself? For, He continues, I experience the ineffable love of God–a love more easily felt than described. Since God has planted the seeds of goodness in us, we can be certain that He is awaiting their fruits.

So let the love of Christ kindle your enthusiasm; let His knowledge be your teacher, and His constancy your strength. May your enthusiasm be fervent, balanced in judgment and invincible, and neither lukewarm nor lacking in discretion. Love the Lord your God with all the affection of which your heart is capable; love Him with all the attentiveness and balance of judgement of your soul and reason; love Him with such strength that you will not be afraid to die for love of Him. May the Lord Jesus seem so sweet and tender to your affections that the sweet enticements of the world hold no attraction for you; may His sweetness conquer their sweetness.

May He also be the guiding light of your intellect and the ruler of your reason: then you will not only avoid the deceptions of heresy and save your faith from their ambushes, but you will also avoid too great and indiscreet an enthusiasm in your behavior. God is Wisdom, and He wants to be loved not only fervently, but also wisely; otherwise the spirit of error will easily take advantage of your enthusiasm. If you neglect this advice, that cunning enemy thereby has a most effective means of taking the love of God from your heart by making you progress carelessly and without discretion. Therefore, may your love be strong and persevering, neither giving in to fears nor being worn out by labors.

Not to be led astray by allurements, that’s what it means to love with all one’s heart; not to be deceived by false arguments, that’s the meaning of loving with all one’s soul; not to let your spirit be broken by difficulties, that is to love with all one’s strength.

The Rule goes on to say that you should love your neighbor as yourself. For he who loves God, loves his neighbor too; “for he who does not love his brother whom he sees, how can he love God whom he does not see?”

Responsory

R/. This is the love of God: that we keep His commandments; * and His commandments are not burdensome.
V/. Those who keep His commandments abide in God, and God abides in them; * and His commandments are not burdensome.

Morning Prayer

Canticle of Zechariah

Ant. Be faithful ’til death, and I will give you the crown of life.

Prayer

Lord God,
you willed that Blessed John Soreth
should renew religious life
and establish communities for women
in the Order of Carmel.
May his prayers and merits
help us to be ever more faithful
in following Christ and His Mother.

We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.

Evening Prayer

Canticle of Mary

Ant. This faithful man made his city strong and renewed the faith of sinners.

Catholic Church 1993, Proper of the Liturgy of the Hours of the Order of the Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel and the Order of Discalced Carmelites (Rev. and augm.), Institutum Carmelitanum, Rome.

• Twitter
• Facebook
• Instagram
• Tumblr
• Mastodon
• Pinterest
• Reddit
• YouTube
• Vimeo

https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/07/26/soreth24lit/

#BlessedJohnSoreth #Carmelite #LiturgyOfTheHours #optionalMemorial #priest #PriorGeneral

We would love to see this time in our lives as a time of renewal in all that has to do with our prayer in Carmel. We have the sensation that although we talk a lot about Carmel’s tradition of prayer, our daily practice of prayer does not always reflect the beautiful truths that we proclaim. What are we to do? We have to see prayer as a constant characteristic of our lives, a presence, a conversation that is continuous, intimate, simple and friendly, with a sense of God being present at all times, in our prayer that is silent, individual and communitarian, and liturgical, prayer with the Bible on our laps, prayer in moments when we are gathered at table and other moments when together we give thanks to God and ask for his blessing.

Míceál O’Neill, O.Carm.
Miguel Márquez Calle, O.C.D.

As we celebrate the Solemnity of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, we are invited to reflect on the call to renewal in our prayer life. This year, Carmelite Prior General Míceál O’Neill and Discalced Carmelite Superior General Miguel Márquez Calle have issued a joint letter titled, In Mary a Dawn of Hope: In Mary our way of Praying, emphasizing the need for a deeper, more authentic prayer life.

The quote from their letter challenges us to go beyond mere talk about the tradition of prayer and to truly embody it in our daily lives. It’s a reminder that prayer should be a constant, intimate conversation with God, present in every moment—whether silent, communal, or liturgical.

Mary, our “Stella Maris,” guides us in this journey. Her life exemplifies the active and contemplative dimensions of prayer, from her fiat—her “yes” to God—to her unwavering faith at the foot of the cross. Through praying the Hail Mary, we open our hearts to the mystery of the Incarnation, inviting God’s grace into our lives.

The joint letter also reminds us of the importance of community and trust in the Holy Spirit. Just as Mary waited with the disciples for the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, we too are called to embrace hope and new life, even amidst challenges.

Join us in this call to renewal. Let’s reflect on the quote above and the insights from Fathers Míceál and Miguel. Let’s ask ourselves how we can “see prayer as a constant characteristic of our lives.” What are the little things we can do to have “a sense of God being present at all times”?

Listen to our special podcast episode above or on your favorite podcast platform to aid in your reflection and find inspiration from the words of our Carmelite superiors.

Featured image: Photographer Karel Miragaya captures this tender image of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. Image credit: kmiragaya / 123RF (Stock photo)

https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/07/16/olmc-ep10/

#Carmelite #DiscalcedCarmelite #letter #Mary #MíceálONeill #MiguelMárquezCalle #OurLadyOfMountCarmel #Podcast #practiceOfThePresenceOfGod #prayer #PriorGeneral #renewal #SuperiorGeneral

[T]he general is such a servant of the Lord, and so discreet and learned, that he regarded the work as good; moreover he showed no displeasure toward me. His name is Fray Juan Bautista Rubeo de Ravenna, a person very distinguished in the order, and rightly so.

Saint Teresa of Avila

The Book of Her Foundations, Chap. 2 (excerpt)

Note: Carmelite Prior General Giovanni Battista Rossi—who St. Teresa referred to as ‘Juan Bautista Rubeo’—was elected Prior General of the Carmelites on this day in 1564. Kieran Kavanaugh, OCD provides this brief biographical sketch of Giovanni Battista Rossi:

Juan Bautista Rubeo (Giovanni Battista Rossi, 1507-1578) was an untiring apostle born in Ravenna who entered the Carmelites at the age of ten. He received his doctorate in Padua. In 1546 he was named procurator general of the order and began lecturing at the Sapienza in Rome.

The Carmelite general chapter, under the presidency of St. Charles Borromeo, unanimously elected him general of the order on 21 May 1564. He lost no time in obtaining faculties from the Holy See to visit, reform, and correct the houses of the order. His cherished desires were to bring the order back to its origins, to stress solitude, affective prayer, devotion to Mary, and the apostolate. This appealed to him much more than merely promoting fulfillment of the laws newly set forth by the Council of Trent.

In 1564 he began his visit to Spain, and on 10 June 1566, he had an audience with Philip II. Proceeding to Andalusia, where the Carmelites were torn by rival factions and resistance to reform, he convoked a provincial chapter for 22 September at which over 200 Carmelites took part. His efforts to correct abuses angered the guilty parties and caused them to make appeals to the king, complaining of Rossi and calling on the king himself to set up a visitation.

As a result, Philip II lost confidence in Rossi and initiated his own plans for the reform of religious orders in Spain. Unaware of the king’s attitude, Rossi began his visitation of Castile and on 27 April 1567 authorized Teresa to found other houses for her nuns, provided they be under the jurisdiction of the order, and the number in each community be restricted to no more than twenty-five nuns. A month later he limited the region where the new houses could be founded to Castile, but later he extended this to all parts. Because of the troubles among the friars in Andalusia, he did not want to grant permission for new foundations of discalced friars. But at Teresa’s request on 10 August 1567, he wrote from Barcelona giving her permission to found two houses of “contemplative Carmelite friars” in Castile.

In 1569 in a letter to the prioress of Medina, Rossi wrote: “She [Teresa of Jesus] does more good for the order than all the Carmelite friars in Spain together.” And Teresa esteemed him just as highly.

But later because of the many jurisdictional complexities that arose from the king’s desire to reform the Carmelites in Spain, passions were aroused and Rossi was so misinformed that he approved measures harmful to what Teresa was trying to bring about. She never lost her high esteem for Rossi and explained and appealed to him through her letters.

Teresa of Avila, St. 1985, The Collected Works of St. Teresa of Avila, translated from the Spanish by Kavanaugh, K; Rodriguez, O, ICS Publications, Washington DC.

Featured image: This engraving of Giovanni Battista Rossi was created by Flemish printmaker Arnold van Westerhout for Gabriel Wessel’s Historia chronologica priorum generalium latinorum Ordinis Beatissimae Virginis Mariae de Monte Carmelo, in qua vitae, gestaque eorum, atque res memoratu digniores, quae sub singulorum accidernut Regimine, breviter describuntur. This history of the Carmelite prior generals featured an engraved portrait of Father General Rossi, which appears on page 188 of Historia chronologica alongside his biography. Another van Westerhout engaging of a famous Carmelite prior general in Wessel’s Historia is Blessed John Soreth. Mariano Ventimiglia was the editor of Wessel’s Carmelite history, published in Naples in 1773. Image credit: Carmelites (Public domain)

https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/05/20/rubeo-21may1564/

#election #foundations #GiovanniBattistaRossi #history #JuanBautistaRubeo #KingPhilipII #praise #PriorGeneral #Spain #StCharlesBorromeo #StTeresaOfAvila

There may still be some who, from deference to the naturally staid, impassive character of the English, would counsel Catholics to maintain a certain reserve in their devotion to Mary, as though, indeed, there were any other than Mary who was to crush the head of error; as though there could be danger or excess where God has so wondrously surpassed Himself: can the love of Catholics for Mary ever rise to such a height, or can they honour her with glory so sublime, as that to which God Himself has chosen to exalt her?

As if this filial homage could be out of place in England, the birth-place of the devotion of the Holy Scapular, the favoured spot to which the Blessed Virgin came, bringing from heaven that pledge of salvation, to bestow it upon a Religious, not of Italy or of Spain, but on an English Saint, born and bred in England, English in his labors, in his mission, and in his election as General of the Carmelite Order.

This preference for England as the scene of that revelation, and the choice of an Englishman, St. Simon Stock, as the receiver of the promise attached to the Scapular is, to my mind, a pledge of the future conversion of that nation.

Servant of God Augustine of the Blessed Sacrament
Hermann Cohen

Lecture at Malines (excerpt)

Summary of Teaching and Resources about the Scapular

The term “scapular” is frequently mentioned on the websites of both the Carmelite (O.Carm.) and Discalced Carmelite (O.C.D.) generalates, reflecting its deep spiritual and historical significance within the Carmelite family.

• Symbol of Mary’s Protection: The scapular is a sign of Mary’s motherly love and protection, symbolizing a commitment to live like her, embodying her virtues and dedication to Christ.
• Historical Context: According to tradition, the Brown Scapular devotion began with a vision reported by St. Simon Stock in the 13th century, where Mary promised protection to those who wore it.
• Rituals and Enrolment: The Carmelites have specific rites for blessing and enrolling members in the Scapular, including prayers and rituals that emphasize its significance as a sign of consecration to Mary and unity with the Carmelite Order.
• Spiritual Meaning: The scapular represents a commitment to follow Jesus and emulate Mary’s example, emphasizing openness to God’s will, continuous prayer, and living a life of service and charity.

The Popes Speak About the Scapular

Pope Pius XII: Pope Pius XII highlighted the significance of the Scapular as a “Habit or Garment of Mary.” He emphasized that the Scapular is a sign and a pledge of the protection of the Mother of God. He encouraged the faithful to see in the Scapular a mirror of humility and purity, a lesson in modesty and simplicity, and a symbol of their prayers for divine assistance. He stated, “The Holy Scapular, which may be called the Habit or Garment of Mary, is a Sign and a Pledge of the protection of the Mother of God”​ (Letter of Pope Pius XII on the Scapular)​.

Pope St. John Paul II: Pope St. John Paul II had a lifelong devotion to the Brown Scapular. He wore it from a young age and even during his emergency surgery following the assassination attempt in 1981. He spoke about the Scapular as a symbol of Mary’s constant protection and a call to live a Christian life through prayer, sacraments, and acts of mercy. He stated, “Two truths are evoked by the sign of the Scapular: on the one hand, the constant protection of the Blessed Virgin… on the other, the awareness that devotion to Her… must become a ‘habit,’ that is, a permanent orientation of one’s own Christian conduct”​ (Message of John Paul II to the Carmelite Family)​.

Specific Resources

For those who wish to join the scapular confraternity and learn about the blessing and imposition rituals, the Carmelites (O.Carm.) official website offers comprehensive, authorized resources:

• The Brown Scapular Confraternity
• Rite for the Blessing and Enrollment

Additionally, the Discalced Carmelite friars (O.C.D.) also provide valuable information:

• Catechesis on the Brown Scapular
• The Brown Scapular Explained by a Discalced Carmelite Priest

These resources provide detailed instructions and spiritual guidance for those interested in the scapular devotion.

Tierney, T  2017,  A Life of Hermann Cohen: From Franz Liszt to John of the Cross,  Balboa Press,  Bloomington, IN

Featured image: Saint Simon Stock receives the scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, ceiling fresco, Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Marostica, Italy. Image credit: isaac74 / Adobe Stock

https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/05/16/mdj2024-ep16/

#BlessedVirgin #BrownScapular #CarmeliteOrder #Catholic #Catholics #conversion #England #HermannCohen #Mary #PriorGeneral #scapular #StSimonStock #TimothyTierneyOCD

May 16
SAINT SIMON STOCK
Religious

Optional Memorial

In the houses in the United Kingdom and Ireland: Memorial

Simon, an Englishman, died at Bordeaux in the mid-thirteenth century. He has been venerated in the Carmelite Order for his personal holiness and his devotion to Our Lady. A liturgical celebration in his honor was observed locally in the fifteenth century, and later extended to the whole Order.

From the Common of Holy Men (Religious)

OFFICE OF READINGS

The Second Reading

From the Flaming Arrow by Nicholas of France, Prior General
(Chapter 6)

I will lead her into the desert, and there I will speak to her heart

Was it not our Lord and Savior Who led us into the desert, as a mark of His favor, so that there He might speak to our hearts with special intimacy? It is not in public, not in the market place, not amid noise and bustle that He shows Himself to His friends for their consolation and reveals His secret mysteries to them, but behind closed doors.

To the solitude of the mountain did Abraham, unswerving in faith and discerning the issue from afar in hope, ascend at the Lord’s command, ready for obedience’s sake to sacrifice Isaac his son; under which mystery the passion of Christ—the true Isaac—lies hidden. To the solitude of the mountain was it too that Abraham’s nephew, Lot, was told to flee for his life in haste from Sodom.

In the solitude of Mount Sinai was the Law given to Moses, and there was he so clothed with light that when he came down from the mountain no one could look upon the brightness of his face.

In the solitude of Mary’s chamber, as she conversed with Gabriel, was the Word of the Father most high in very truth made flesh.

In the solitude of Mount Tabor it undoubtedly was, when it was His will to be transfigured, that God made man revealed His glory to His chosen intimates of the Old and New Testaments. To a mountain solitude did our Savior ascend alone in order to pray. In the solitude of the desert did He fast forty days and forty nights together, and there did He will to be tempted by the devil, so as to show us the most fitting place for prayer, penance, and victory over temptation.

Top the solitude of mountain or desert it was, then, that our Savior retired when He would pray; though we read that He came down from the mountain when He would preach to the people or manifest His works. He who planted our fathers in the solitude of the mountain thus gave Himself to them and their successors as a model, and desired them to write down His deeds, which are never empty of mystical meaning, as an example.

It was this rule of our Savior, as rule of utmost holiness, that some of our predecessors followed of old. They tarried long in the solitude of the desert conscious of their own imperfection. Sometimes however—though rarely—they came down from their desert, anxious, so as not to fail in what they regarded as their duty, to be of service to their neighbors, and sowed broadcast of the grain, threshed out in preaching, that they had so sweetly reaped in solitude with the sickle of contemplation.

Responsory

R/. O that I had wings like a dove, to fly away and be at rest; * so I would escape far away, and take refuge in the desert (alleluia).
V/. The world and its cravings pass away, but those who do God’s will stand firm for ever. * So I would escape far away, and take refuge in the desert (alleluia).

MORNING PRAYER

Canticle of Zechariah

Ant. The Lord is all that I have; the Lord is good to the soul that seeks Him (alleluia).

Prayer

Father,
You called St. Simon Stock to serve you
in the brotherhood of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel.
Through his prayers
help us like him to live in your presence
and to work for man’s salvation.

Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.

EVENING PRAYER

Canticle of Mary

Ant. Where brethren are united in praising God, there the Lord will bestow His blessing (alleluia).

Catholic Church 1993, Proper of the Liturgy of the Hours of the Order of the Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel and the Order of Discalced Carmelites (Rev. and augm.), Institutum Carmelitanum, Rome.

https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/05/15/stocklit24/

#Carmelite #LiturgyOfTheHours #optionalMemorial #PriorGeneral #religious #scapular #StSimonStock